Judge’s hot start perfect response to failed talks
TORONTO — Aaron Judge doesn’t want to answer questions about it, but the Yankees slugger has responded to the failed extension talks perfectly. Judge has had a first month of the season that is reminiscent of his Rookie of the Year season in 2017.
“I go back to last year, the second half of the season,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “You know, he and Giancarlo [Stanton] really carried us offensively. The final few months of that season he was in line with what he’s doing now.
“I just think we’re seeing a great player that now has a lot of big league experience. I think coupled with his talent and his preparation and just the experience he’s gained has made him just a more polished hitter.”
Judge heads into the Yankees’ Friday night’s series opener against the Rangers at the Stadium tied with Anthony Rizzo and Colorado’s C.J. Cron for the most home runs (9) in baseball. He leads the majors in barrel percentage per plate appearance (18.6) and hard hit percentage (67.2) and is second in the big leagues in average exit velocity (96.8) behind Stanton.
In other words, Judge is having a perfect season to get teams lining up to pay him when he is a free agent at the end of the season. Judge, however, is adamant that the failed extension talks with the Yankees, which became uncomfortably public for him, are not the driving motivation for him this season.
He doesn’t need that.
“When I’ve got Anthony Rizzo and Giancarlo behind me and Aaron Hicks or [DJ] Lemahieu in front of me, they push you a little bit,” Judge said. “They’re always getting on base or having great at-bats. That motivates the team. It motivates me to go out there and hit.”
Preemptive postponement: The Yankees postponed Friday night’s series opener against the Rangers because of a forecast of rain through Saturday morning. The game will be played as part of a single-admission doubleheader at the Stadium on Sunday.
Tickets for Friday night’s game are not valid for Sunday’s doubleheader. Fans holding tickets for Friday night’s game may exchange them for tickets to a similar game as described in the Yankees rain check policy. That can be found on the Yankees’ website.
Friday night was also the Yoda bobblehead giveaway night. That has been rescheduled for Wednesday, May 25 game against the Orioles.